COWBOYS 101

The NFL Draft is coming. Free agency is not far off. Peyton Manning hysteria is about to begin. Combines, OTA's, mini camps, all closer than you think. Yes, the 2012 NFL season, for all intents and purposes, is about to begin. For the Dallas Cowboys, this 'off-season', which in reality no longer exists, may be the most important one the franchise has faced in decades, maybe ever.

Why is this spring so important? As the 70's rolled around, the dilemma in Dallas was whether or not Tom Landry could decide who would lead his team, Craig Morton or Roger Staubach. Thankfully, Landry eventually made the right decision. After the 1979 campaign, Dallas faced an uncertain future following Staubach's retirement. Danny White was able to step in and keep the Cowboys winning, though they fell short of the Super Bowl during his time. In 1989, Jerry Jones bought the team, fired Landry, and turned the reins over to Jimmy Johnson. That off-season was filled with anger and apprehension, though fans that had witnessed Landry's empire crumble before their eyes were willing to give the Jerry-Jimmy show a shot, whether they will admit it or not. 

Yes, there have been important off-seasons before, but none as crucial as this one. Why? It's simple. Cowboy Nation is frustrated, frustrated beyond belief. Worse yet, they are becoming apathetic.

Everywhere you go on the map, you will find Cowboy fans. That is why they are still 'America's Team', like it or not. However, the encounters have a different feel now. No longer is Cowboy Nation as big and boastful as Texas itself. They have a look of defeat, complain about the same things, and wonder how in the world it will get better. Mediocrity does that. Yet the single worst thing you see and hear is the most unimaginable.

Mention Super Bowl, and Cowboy fans cringe. Yes, they look and act as if they are physically ill. Why? What happened? How did the five time World Champions turn the ultimate goal into a fans pariah?

Again, it's simple. Too many promises unfulfilled, too much talk and not enough results. Whether it has come from the owners suite, Valley Ranch, the locker room or from the mouths of NFL experts, the annual 'this is the Cowboys year' has taken it's toll on the fan base. Most of their anger is centered on Jones, and his failed reign as general manager. That's not going to change, no matter how loud the villagers become. So the Dallas organization moves on, trying once again to fill the holes that sank the 2011 team, and the 16 others before it.

They must rebuild the secondary, that's obvious. They must find another pass rusher, and tweak the offensive line. They must ignore the anti-Tony Romo nonsense flying around, and concentrate on what is important. Whatever the case, they must hurry, for this fan base needs to be woken from it's apathetic state quickly.

Can Jerry do it? He did it in 89, though he had Johnson calling the shots and making the personnel decisions. If you are a Cowboy fan, do you have faith in the braintrust with the most vital part of the spring just ahead? Will Dallas make the necessary moves to take this team out of the doldrums, or will those two words continue to cause winces and groans?

Super Bowl. 

Made you queasy, didn't it?

 

 

Tags: Dallas, Dallas Cowboys, Football, Jerry Jones, NFL

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